Here’s what we know: the Ryanair aircraft carrying dissident Belarusian journalist Roman Protasevich was scheduled to fly from Athens in Greece to Vilnius in Lithuania on May 23. While in Belarusian airspace, the pilot was ordered to divert from its course and to land in Minsk. On the ground, the airport authorities searched the baggage of the passengers, checked their identities, and detained at least two of them: Protasevich – a prominent opponent of Belarusian dictator Alexander Lukashenko – and his girlfriend, law student Sofia Sapega.
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A photo taken on May 23, 2021, shows a Boeing 737-8AS Ryanair passenger plane (flight FR4978, SP-RSM) from Athens, Greece, that was intercepted and diverted to Minsk on the same day by Belarus authorities, landing at Vilnius International Airport, its initial destination.
